Interventions
by secretPersonalities
Summary: Sakura may have finally made up with Sasuke, but Ino thinks that's not enough. Sakura needs to wake up and get Sasuke to respond to her confession. And she's not the only one: a certain heiress is in the same boat. Looks like Yamanaka's back to save the day! (Sequel to Confessions) SasuSaku, NaruHina, and others
1. Conference of Kunoichi

_**Guess who's back in business! Time for the sequel to Confessions! **_

_**I repeat, I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!**_

"I'm so late! Geez, that Pig's gonna kill me!" A cloud of dust filled the streets of Konoha. Some may say there must have been a stampede. Maybe the fangirls were at it again? Nope. This was just Sakura Haruno, the Hokage's apprentice, frantically making her way to the rondevous point Ino Yamanaka had set up. Of course, that was Ino's house. _I better hurry. Ino was dead serious about this. It might be important! _

**Or it could be gossip or whining about her team… **Inner put in.

_That's true. But either way, I'll never hear the end of it if I stand her up._

Finally Sakura arrived. She bent over panting. "Made it." She made her way to the door and walked right in. However, she didn't see what she was expecting.

"Tenten? What're you doing here?" The weapon mistress, sitting on the couch, shrugged. "Ino told me to come here." Sakura blinked. "Really? She told _me_ to meet her here."

Said blonde suddenly came running up to them. "Hey, there Forehead. Tenten. Glad you could make it."

Sakura, having a gut feeling, raised an eyebrow at her. "What's this about, Pig?"

"Hold your horses! I'll explain once everyone is present."

Now Sakura was confused. "Everyone? Who else did you…"

Suddenly there was a small knock on the door. Ino beamed. "That's probably her!"

Sakura turned to Tenten. "Do you have any idea what's going on?"

"Not really. Though Ino did say I was supposed to be 'moral support'."

"Moral…what?"

"Well, everyone's accounted for!" Sakura turned to interrogate, but was surprised yet again when her eyes met the Hyugga heiress, Hinata. "You too, Hinata?" Hinata blushed and looked down. "H-hey, S-Sakura-chan."

_Okay, why would Ino summon all of the girls from the Shinobi Twelve?_

Ino clapped her hands together. "Alright! LET THE CONFERENCE OF THE KUNOICHI FOUR OFFICIALLY BEGIN!"

The other three sweat dropped. Hinata lifted her hand and whispered to Sakura. "D-do people r-really call us that?" Sakura rolled her eyes. "Nah. She most likely made it up herself. Look how proud she is."

"Ladies. The reason I've summoned you all here is because we are facing a crisis!"

Tenten scoffed. "And what kind of crisis would that be?"

"The problem lies… with you two!" She pointed at Sakura and Hinata, both stiffening under her intense glare. Hinata started shaking a little and held onto Sakura's arm. A little shaky herself, Sakura spoke up. "W-what the heck are you talking about, Pig? What'd we do?!"

Ino lowered her hand. "Both of you are in serious trouble. This is a matter of friendship! A matter of justice! And most importantly…. A MATTER OF LOVE!"

Tenten sighed. "Ino, just get to the point. You're confusing them."

Sakura glared at Tenten. _So she knows!_

"Hinata…Sakura…. Both of you have taken a serious blow to your pride! Being the beautiful, kind-hearted gem I am, I've decided to take matters into my own hands. I will be like your guardian angel! I…

"You guys need to talk to Uzumaki and Uchiha."

Ino turned to Tenten, miserable. She whined, "_Tenten_… I was getting to that…"

"Well, you were taking too long! I want to get this over with!"

Hinata spoke up. "Ummm… Why do we have to talk to them?"

"Well, duh! They owe you some answers!" Seeing the still confused looks on their faces, Ino sighed and continued. "Look. Both of you have something in common, and it has to do with those two." She waited expectantly for it to click… but nothing. "Ugh! You confessed to them! Or have you forgotten?"

Simultaneously, the girls blushed. That was something private.

"Hinata! You confessed to Naruto and almost died protecting him from Pein! Did he ever acknowledge your feelings, let alone thank you?"

Hinata looked down. "N-no. He didn't…"

"That's not fair, Ino! Naruto went ballistic after Hinata got hurt! He obviously cares about her!"

"What about you, Sakura? You've confessed more than once! You even had a heart to heart with Sasuke after he came back, even though you tried to avoid him! Yet he hasn't responded, either!"

Sakura was caught off guard. "I-Ino, I don't need him to reply! I'm just happy we're friends again! Can't we leave it at that?"

Tenten finally spoke up. " 'fraid not, Sakura. Letting a guy ignore you is seriously disgraceful."

"You haven't mentioned why you're on that pig's side!"

"Like I said. I'm the moral support."

_That and you don't want Ino to bring up Neji…_

"The point is, you both need to get in their faces and demand an answer!"

Hinata gasped, near fainting. Sakura quickly went to her side. She turned back to Ino. "That's enough, Pig! This is none of your business! What do you know about it, anyway? Your boyfriend doesn't even understand what a relationship is!

Ino sighed. "You don't get it. Sai at least accepts that I want to be with him. Even Shikamaru accepted Temari, even though he claims relationships are 'troublesome.' It's time for…"

"FORGET IT! What are we supposed to do? Waltz right up and say, 'Hey, remember that time when I confessed my love for you? How about an answer?!"

She grabbed Hinata's arm. "Come on! We're leaving!" Hinata was too dizzy to argue, so she let herself get led out the door. _**SLAM!**_

Tenten looked at the door, then at Ino. "So… now what? I don't think this was part of your master plan?"

"NO! THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO BE SO OVERJOYED AND MOTIVATED THAT THEY'D BE IN TEARS! THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO BE IN MY DEBT! THIS IS THE THANKS I GET?"

"But they did have a point. It's their business."

"Don't get me started, Tenten!" She could swear there were flames in the blonde's eyes!

Scared out of her mind, she raised her hands in defense. "Ahh… okay, okay! They need help! Just leave me out of it!" _As long as you don't force me to confess to Neji!_

"That's fine by me. I already got a plan, and I can do it on my own! If they won't get those guys in line, then I'll have to do it myself!"

_She's seriously scary when she's like this…  
_

_**Wuh-oh. What could Ino be planning this time? Review, please!**_


	2. Gather Intelligence

_**So Phase 1: Conference of Kunoichi didn't work. On to Phase 2: Gather Intelligence.**_

_**I don't own Naruto. Really.**_

* * *

That night, Ino paced back and forth in her room. "Alright, I know what has to happen for my plan to work, but I'll need some spies to gather Intel…"

She went through her mental list of friends. Obviously, the girls were out of the question; Sasuke was sure to shut down at the sight of a female.

"So it has to be one of the guys… There's Shino, Kiba, Sai, Shikamaru, Lee, Neji, and Choji…"

Lee and Neji were also poor choices; that was clear. Neji was bound to protect Hinata, and he'd never help if he knew what her intentions were. The same goes for Lee; he'd never help her set Sakura up with someone other than himself. She could see the tears streaming down his face…

She held her chin as she continued to think. "Kiba may be a sensor, but I can't imagine him being helpful with working undercover. Besides, he probably wouldn't care, and he doesn't owe me anything. And I hate to say it, but Sai is pretty clueless when it comes to this stuff. Shino might be an option…"

She stopped pacing. "What am I saying? Naruto and Sasuke won't open up to a quiet creep like him! Besides, his bugs are so gross!" She shuddered at the thought of those insects crawling around; she really hated bugs.

"Okay. That leaves me with no choice." Quickly, she grabbed her purse and checked how much was inside. "Perfect!"

* * *

The next day, Ino sent a message to her teammates, telling them to meet her by their usual restaurant for some barbeque.

Shikamaru slowly walked down the street with his hands in his pockets."What do you think Ino wants? It's not like her to suggest going to eat…"

His companion gave a small shrug. "Who cares? It's probably nothing. Besides, I could go for some grilled meat!"

Shikamaru looked over to him. "Choji, you do realize you're still eating chips, right?"

Choji nodded as he chomped away. "This is just an appetizer. Want one?" He held one up. Shikamaru smiled and reached for it. _Sometimes, it's hard to say 'no' to him._

"CHOJI! SHIKAMARU!"

The two turned to see their blonde teammate waving them over.

* * *

"Eat all you want, boys, 'cause today is on me!"

Choji raised his chopsticks in the air. "Alright! Chow time!"

As Choji attacked the spread before them, Shikamaru couldn't get himself to eat. He just kept watching Ino, who was slowly eating with a smile on her face. He didn't know why, but red flags were going off in his mind. His intellect was one thing he rarely doubted.

"Ino. What do you want from us?"

Choji stopped and looked up. "Huh? What do you mean, Shikamaru? We can trust Ino; she's our teammate."

Shikamaru glanced back at him. "Exactly. As our teammate, we know her better than anyone. Do you honestly think she'd do something like this without an ulterior motive?"

Ino waved her hand. "You're always so paranoid, Shikamaru. Maybe I just want to treat my teammates. Can you blame me?"

Both guys raised an eyebrow. Even Choji wouldn't fall for that one. "Okay, Ino's officially lost it."

Shikamaru eyed Ino carefully. "You might as well tell us already."

Ino simply smiled. "Oh, it's nothing really. Except for a teensy favor." She winked.

Choji groaned. "What is it this time?"

"All you have to do is get Intel from a couple of targets."

Shikamaru wasn't convinced; there had to be more than just that, or she wouldn't clean out her savings like this. She was well aware of how many times Asuma had been close to debt after feeding Choji.

"And who might these targets be?"

Ino simply smiled. "Oh… just Naruto…"

Choji laughed. "Naruto? Man, that's a piece of cake!"

Ino laughed a little before turning to the side with an awkward look on her face. "… and Sasuke," she muttured.

The teens before her froze on the spot. No one had been particularly fond of trying to talk to the Uchiha. They could get along just fine, but no one, NO ONE, tried to ask him for _anything_. And now she wanted them to _interrogate_ him?

Ino decided the best strategy was to put on her adorable act. She made puppy eyes and pouted her lips. "I thought we were a team. Won't you help me?"

She growled as she saw they were completely unaffected. _Dumb boys._ But, she knew she couldn't make them angry by insulting them, or they would never do it. So, she tried a different approach. "Come on, please? It's not just for me; it's for Sakura and Hinata, too. It would mean the world to us."

Choji finally blinked. "What do those two have to do with anything?"

Shikamaru sighed and leaned back. "I get what's going on. I agree that watching them is such a pain, but this is their business. Let's just let them sort it out."

Ino slammed her hands on the table. "That's the thing! It'll take forever to sort out! That's why someone has to step in and help them!"

Choji was totally lost; he had no clue what was going on. "Um, guys?"

The lazy genius folded his arms. "But did they actually ask you to do this? Or are you sticking your nose in other people's matters again?"

At that remark, Ino snarled, "I'm not 'sticking my nose' in anything! I'm just trying to help them! You wouldn't understand how insulting this is for them! You're a guy!"

Shikarmaru didn't react to her little tantrum. He calmly replied, "My gender has nothing to do with it. Obviously, they don't see it as an insult, and they definitely don't want your help. Anyone could see that."

Choji, still lost, tried to get their attention again. "Um, _guys_?"

Too angry to notice the third member of the team, Ino huffed. "They do so want my help! They just don't know it yet!"

Shikamaru sighed. "This can only lead to trouble."

"If you don't, then I might just so happen to have forgotten my purse!"

His eyes narrowed. "You wouldn't."

Ino smirked. "Try me!"

"WILL SOMEONE TELL ME WHAT'S GOING ON?" Choji broke them out of the argument. They both blinked and turned to him.

Ino slightly tilted her head. "Huh? You mean you didn't figure it out?"

"Choji. She wants us to find out how they feel about the girls' confessions."

Choji remained quiet, as though he was contemplating it. Shikamaru and Ino shared a look; it's not like him to be so serious. They turned back to him as he spoke up.

"I think we ought to do it, Shikamaru. I know it's got to be hard on the girls. Anyway, I know you can think of a way to worm it out of them."

Ino was having difficulty containing her excitement! "Choji? Are you serious?"

He grinned and nodded. "Anything to help a friend."

They both looked at Shikamaru; he sighed. "This is too troublesome."

Ino beamed. "I knew I could count on you!"

* * *

"So what's the plan, Shikamaru?" Choji asked as they walked along the streets of Konoha. Ino had decided she remembered her money, so she paid for the meal anyway. Now they were on their way to complete their end of the bargain.

Shikamaru looked to the sky as he walked. "The first thing is to locate the targets."

"Why do you keep calling them 'targets'? It's just Naruto and Sasuke."

"If I treat this like a mission, I'm hoping it won't seem as pointless."

"Oh… Is it working?"

Shikamaru turned to him and smirked. "Not really."

Choji snickered, "Well, we still have to do it. Think of all the awkward moments we could avoid in the future by doing this. That and Ino should finally get off our backs."

Shikamaru nodded in agreement. "Then I guess we should get his over with."

"Alright, so we need to locate…the targets. Where do we start?"

"Think about the targets in question. What's the one place we're almost guaranteed to find one of them?"

Choji thought for a second before the light bulb flashed on. "How did I not know that?"

* * *

As Choji and Shikamaru reached their destination, the sight of orange confirmed Shikamaru's theory. There sat Naruto and Sasuke; the former was sloppily slurping his ramen, while the other was eating slowly and neatly. Shikamaru kept his voice low. "Looks like Sakura's back at the hospital again. That's good news for us."

Choji casually approached the bench. "Mind if we join you?"

Naruto was too busy eating his noodles to react, and Sasuke obviously didn't care enough to respond, so they both sat down and gave their orders.

Shikamaru was careful to avoid eye contact with them as he tried to concentrate on forming a plan. _Alright, we've located them. Now we have to think of an approach that doesn't appear to be suspicious._

Choji looked down at the table as his food was served. _Geez, what the heck are we supposed to say? 'Hey guys, remember when…'_ He slumped in his seat. _I really didn't think this through._

Both ninjas were in a bit of a predicament, but as luck would have it, the perfect distraction appeared. A small boy ran over to where they were sitting; his face was lit up as if Christmas had come early. "Hey, you're Naruto Uzumaki, the Hero! Man, you're so cool! Can I have an autograph? Huh? Can I?"

Naruto scratched his head. He couldn't turn the boy down. "Sure, kid. Why not?"

As Naruto signed a piece of paper, Shikamaru nodded to Choji; this was their chance.

When the boy had thanked Naruto and ran off, Choji gave a whistle. "Look at you, Mr. Popular. You know, I bet that reputation of yours has got girls knocking down your door, too."

Naruto put his hands behind his head as he grinned. "Nah, not really."

"Oh, come on. There has to be someone you want to impress," Choji stated as he nudged the blonde's arm.

Said "hero" shook his head. "Nope."

Shikamaru leaned in. "Really? No one's _confessed_ to you or anything?"

Naruto blinked, then he thought, "Well…Sakura did…"

No one seemed to notice the Uchiha stiffen slightly. _She did what?_

Oblivious to the guy next to him, Naruto kept going. "But it wasn't real. It turned out she was just trying to get me to come home. I didn't believe her for a second."

Choji eyed him. "Are you sure there isn't _someone else_?"

Naruto folded his arms and tried to think, but he shrugged as he drew a blank. Shikamaru closed his eyes in irritation. "Think hard. Back to when Pein attacked."

Naruto simply blinked. "Eh?" Shikamaru sweat-dropped. _He's as clueless as ever._

Choji shook his head. "Did you seriously forget? That's harsh."

Feeling like he was being insulted, Naruto quickly tried to defend himself. "Hey, I'm not the only one! What about Teme?"

The Uchiha responded without so much as sparing a glance. "Leave me out of this."

Naruto whirled around; Sasuke didn't move a muscle. "You're just saying that because you know I'm right! I bet none of the girls who confessed in the past meant anything to you!"

"Hn."

Shikamaru was a bit pleased that his plan was running smoothly. His tactic had been to first approach Uzumaki, since he was more likely to answer questions with no problem. Eventually, he'd try to bring up Sasuke, then he'd do the questioning for them without even knowing it. The problem was the Intel they were collecting wasn't what their…client…wanted to hear.

He sweat-dropped as Naruto continued to yell at Sasuke. _Well, this is hopeless…_

* * *

Ino groaned. "You have got to be kidding me!"

Shikamaru shrugged. "It's like I told you; Naruto's too dense, and Sasuke's too cold to care. There's no point in continuing; you're just wasting your time."

Instead of getting angry, Ino surprised him by simply wearing a wicked grin. "Oh, no. You've got it wrong. I expected it to be something like this. Now that I know for sure, I can take matters into my own hands."

Shikamaru couldn't help but notice her maniacal behavior. _This could get ugly._


	3. Planting the Seed

An exhausted medic slowly made her way through the streets of Konoha. Sakura had just finished her shift at the hospital and was now on her way home. The problem was that she seemed to notice every couple on the street that night. She sighed. _It's all because of that Ino-pig!_

She thought back to the "Conference of the Kunoichi Four" or whatever it was. It had already been a couple of days since then, but the events kept recurring in her memory.

_After storming out of the Yamanaka house, Sakura kept dragging Hinata down the road in no particular direction._

"_Can you believe her? Sticking her nose in other people's business like that… Why can't she just stay out of it!"_

_Hinata wasn't sure what to do, so she tried to speak up. "B-but Sakura…"_

_The furious medic didn't hear the poor girl; she was too busy ranting. "I mean, she's been like this since we were kids! She always had to take charge and get her way! When will she-"_

_That's when Hinata halted abruptly, pulling a surprised Sakura to face her. _

"_I know that's not how you feel, Sakura. Yes, she does interfere, but are her intentions really that awful? You told me what happened when you were young and how you met her. Do you honestly believe she should have minded her own business then?"_

_Sakura gaped; Hinata had never sounded so confident before! 'And she's got a point…'_

_Hinata sighed. "I can't say that I feel comfortable about it either, but you know it's her way of saying she cares."_

_Sakura stared at Hinata, letting her words sink in. Her eyes softened; not just because of Ino, but also Hinata_. '_She's so loyal; she never stutters when she's defending a friend. Both of them have their own way of showing that they care.'_

_She gave a smile, "I guess you're right, Hinata…" _

_At those words, Hinata seemed to relax a little out of relief._

_Sakura put her arms behind her back. "So… does that mean you want to take Ino's advice?"_

_She smirked when she saw Hinata blush. "That's what I thought." _

Sakura sighed. _I know Ino's intentions are good, but I just can't bring myself to face him. If he hasn't done anything by this time, that just means he can't return my feelings. I can accept that; I can't force him to like me. _

As much as she wanted to sulk, she knew she couldn't. She shook her head in an attempt to clear it. "I can't think about that now; I have a mission first thing in the morning."

* * *

At the Hyuuga mansion, Hinata silently went to her room and walked straight to her window. She smiled as she gazed at the moon, but it faded. She didn't let Sakura know, but Ino's words had hit her hard.

_It's true. Naruto hasn't responded. Maybe he doesn't remember at all…_

Feeling rather insignificant, she sat down on the side of her bed. "Why am I so weak?" she whispered.

* * *

Ino paced in her room, trying to come up with a plan. She had told Shikamaru she could take matters into her own hands, but she had no idea what to do next. She tried to concentrate.

"So, if Sasuke and Naruto are completely clueless about their own feelings, maybe I can force them to wake up and smell the roses… but how?"

This was the more difficult part of the scheme. Her secret weapon had always been seduction, but that option was next to impossible. The new "mature" Sakura would never attempt to _flirt _with Sasuke, and Hinata would faint at the thought. She giggled as she tried to picture Hinata being seductive. _Maybe in an alternate universe…_

She held her chin as she continued to think. "Hmmm… well, guys are also pretty competitive…" A light bulb flickered on as Ino came up with a brilliant idea! "There's only one option! I have to make them jealous!"

And she knew exactly how to do it. All she had to do was plant the seed that those two have been seen with other guys. They'll probably be indifferent at first, but they'll take off when they think no one's looking! "And when those idiots find the girls, they'll realize how much they mean to each other! It's PERFECT!"

Ino was so excited, she started squealing and doing her happy dance! "Oh, I'm so amazing! What a gem I am!"

After three minutes of that, her eyes widened and she stopped. "Oh, wait. I need to find some guys to make it look like Sakura and Hinata are seeing other people…"

Hinata was simple; Kiba Inuzuka was really close to her as a comrade. Of course, he was well aware of Hinata's crush and would tease her about it all the time. _But Naruto doesn't know that._ Ino smirked to herself.

Making a match for Sakura would be a bit more difficult. Sure, she had guys like Rock Lee chasing after her, but could the Uchiha really get jealous over Bushy Brows and his spandex?

Then, Ino thought back to earlier that day. She had been on her way to report to the Hokage for her shift when she overheard an interesting conversation regarding a new mission for Sakura.

"_I simply cannot believe how lucky she is! I would give anything to be in her place right now!"_

"_I know how you feel. After seeing a picture of that man, I'd be begging for that mission, too."_

_ "To think, Sakura gets to be the guide for one of the young lords of the land!"_

_ "But it's not fair. She didn't even want the mission."_

Ino knew her friend quite well; even if she didn't want to do it, she'd put on her best act to please the young lord. She had to make a good impression for the sake of the village. _And if Sasuke sees them together…_ Ino grinned; now she had the perfect plan.

* * *

The next morning, Ino dashed over to the training grounds. _I doubt Naruto and Sasuke know about Sakura's mission; they probably think she's at the hospital again. So, they should be sparring about now._

Her theory was right on the money. When she reached the grounds, she saw the Uchiha gracefully avoiding the attacks of three Narutos with ease.

Ino sweat-dropped_. I guess they set a limit on the number of clones. I'd expect that baka to use about a hundred or so…_

As one of the Narutos got tossed in the air by the clones for an aerial attack, Sasuke prepared to counter.

"HEY! SASUKE! NARUTO!"

Naruto turned his head. "Eh? Ino?" Due to the distraction, he lost his focus and didn't notice Sasuke move out of the way; he crashed into the ground. "GAH!"

Ignoring the groans and grumbles of his teammate, Sasuke narrowed his eyes a bit. He was a little ticked to have his training interrupted. "What do you want, Yamanaka?"

She ran up to them. "I was looking for Sakura. Have you seen her anywhere?"

Naruto paused in his tantrum and turned to her. "Sakura? Isn't she at the hospital today?"

Ino shook her head. "I was just there."

Naruto was near panicking now. "You mean, she didn't go? That's not like her!"

Sasuke remained silent; he had no reason to be concerned. But that didn't mean he wasn't curious. _If she's not at the hospital, then she should be here training._

Ino inwardly smirked. _They're hooked._ She turned to the side with her hands on her hips. "Well, I guess it's possible she's with that boyfriend of hers…"

Naruto's jaw dropped. "Sakura has a boyfriend?! Since when?"

Sasuke's mouth was slightly agape, but the dobe was much more noticeable. When he realized it, he quickly composed himself and returned to his indifferent state.

"Oh, yeah. She helped out in a nearby village, and she got to know the lord's son." Ino brought her pointer-finger to her cheek. "Actually, I think she might have mentioned him coming for a visit…"

Naruto folded his arms. "Why should we believe you? Sakura tells us everything!"

"But it's true. I haven't seen her around as often because of it. She and Hinata have been so busy lately. But then again, I spend plenty of time with Sai."

Naruto blinked. "Wait a minute. You said 'Hinata.' She has a boyfriend, too?"

Ino nodded. "Kiba asked her out a couple of days ago. She said they're meeting today. I guess she was sick of having her feelings ignored." Judging by his expression, Ino could tell something had clicked in his head. _Bingo. _

Deciding she had said what she needed to, she turned to walk away. "Well, I guess I better get back to the shop. Sorry I interrupted your little session. Carry on." She gave a small wave before walking away_. I give them a minute before they go looking for them._

The two shinobi simply watched the blonde walk away. Once she was out of sight, Naruto turned to Sasuke, laughing awkwardly as he scratched the back of his head. "Man, are girls weird or what? I mean, does she honestly expect us to believe that?"

Sasuke spared a brief glance, followed by his signature grunt. "Hn."

As if he understood the language, Naruto nodded his head. "Yeah, you're right. It's not like it's any of our business."

Silence followed that last comment. They both stood there for a minute before Naruto spoke up. "A-actually, Teme, I'm kind of… beat. I think we did enough training for today."

"… Alright. If you're so weak to have already exhausted yourself, there's no point."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at his "friend."

"Teme," he grumbled.

"Hn. Dobe."

After exchanging one final glance, they took off simultaneously in opposite directions.

* * *

_**Ino Yamanaka, what have you started? **_

_**Review! **_


	4. According to Plan?

Ino could not hide the slight bounce in her step as she walked through the streets of Konoha. Usually, she'd be a bit slower when she had to come in and help with the shop, but today was different. She had just helped two friends in dire need, and it felt great! _Won't be long now. Soon there'll be two, new, official couples in the Konoha 12._

The blonde had to keep herself from squealing; perhaps she could use her impressive skills to help Tenten, next…

* * *

An orange flash streamed through the marketplace; if someone had the skill to see the object moving at such speed, he could tell it was heading straight for the Hyuga compound.

After Ino had shown up, Naruto's head was buzzing. _'Hinata has a boyfriend? She's dating Kiba? Why?'_

His previous conversation at Ichraku was starting to make sense, now. Shikamaru and Choji must have been hinting at Hinata! _That's_ why they kept talking about girls and confessions! She _did_ confess to him, but the intense fight with Pein must have distracted him. It wasn't his fault he forgot! It was an accident! Besides, he had fought to protect her!

'_I guess she was sick of having her feelings ignored.'_

It wasn't that he ignored her. She had been a good friend to him during their genin days. As far as he could remember, Hinata was the only person who never openly ridiculed him. Everyone else would look at him with hate in their eyes, but there was never a trace of darkness in her pale eyes. In fact, the few times he had interacted with her, she only showed kindness. She was the _only_ one.

His thoughts were brought back to the battle with Pein. He had been pinned, and Hinata leapt into danger just to protect him. She knew how powerful her opponent was, but that wouldn't stop her! And when she seemed fatally injured, he blacked out. It must have been when the Nine Tails went berserk. There was no way that was a coincidence! Naruto deserved a good punch in the face from Sakura for taking so long to realize how important Hinata really was to him.

'_She's sick of waiting? That doesn't sound like Hinata! I have to see for myself!'_

Picking up speed, Naruto bounded for the Hyuga's mansion. As he approached the main gate, he suddenly skidded to a halt. Standing at the entrance were Hinata and Kiba, just as Ino had said. Naruto quickly backed around the corner, careful to remain hidden. Poking an eye out, he noticed right away the bouquet of flowers the mutt handed to the girl. He seemed to say something, which caused the girl to _blush_! Isn't that what she always did around _him_?

As if a heavy weight had suddenly fallen on his shoulders, Naruto came to a terrible realization; Ino had been right. His body turned away from the scene. He had seen enough; that was all the proof he needed. Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he slowly walked away.

'_I was too late.'_

* * *

"K-Kiba, why are you delivering flowers?"

The boy grinned as he puffed out with pride. "Heh. Ino said she needed a hand with deliveries today. Seeing as how Akamaru and I became the main delivery duo when the village was being rebuilt, I guess I was the one to turn to!"

"Well, that's no reason to lie to me! I ordered these for Hanabi. Why did you have to tell me they're from N-Na-"

"Naruto?" Kiba finished for her.

Simply hearing his name was enough to make the poor girl turn beet red. Kiba couldn't help but laugh. "Sorry, sorry. I couldn't help it!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Sakura was standing outside the Hokage's building. Her "client" was bound to arrive soon, to her dismay. She couldn't stop herself from pouting a bit: why her? Of all people, why send her to babysit a lord's son? There were patients that needed her attention, for crying out loud! How could Lady Tsunade expect her to drop her duties and play hostess? Wasn't that more Ino's forte, anyway?

As she fumed in her head, a young man approached her with two attendants at his heels. Only as a rose appeared in her face did she come back to reality and notice the man's presence.

"Ah, Miss Haruno! You are as lovely as the day we met! It must be the work of fate that we are able to meet again!"

Sakura rolled her eyes. _'Hmph. As if I'd ever fall for a line like that.'_

This man was certainly confident; his attitude oddly reminded her of Rock Lee. Inner Sakura was still fuming at him, of course.

'**YOU'RE THE ONE WHO SPECIFICALLY ASKED FOR US, LOSER!'**

Green eyes stared at the rose he held out for her. _'This is a mission. I should play nice, or I'll get an earful from the Hokage.'_ The thought of angering her sensei was enough to force her hand to accept the rose. She did her best to offer a smile. "Good day, my lord."

The young lord held up his hand. "Oh, please, no need for formalities. You are free to call me Akiro."

Sakura sweat-dropped as she watched his unnecessary movements as he spoke, as if he were some sort of actor on a stage. _'Does he have to be so dramatic about __everything__?'_ It took almost all the strength she had not to sigh; this was going to be a long mission.

Akiro was quick to send his attendants away, clearly wanting to be alone with the kunoichi. Once they had gone, he turned back to her with a cheesy smile on his face. "Well, then. Shall we be off?"

Remembering her duty, she lightly nodded and said, "Of course, Lord Akiro. I have already prepared a list of places we can visit for the inspection. We may need to follow a tight schedule, but-"

Sakura was cut off as Akiro sighed overdramatically and waved his hand. "Yes, yes, but before we get to all _that_, I've grown weary from my travels. Why not find a place to rest and share a pot of tea?"

'_Weary, huh? I bet you made the trip without your feet ever touching the ground!'_

Before she had the chance to protest, arguing that he was supposed to be here on business, he had wrapped his arm behind her shoulders and started to lead her to town. Sakura knew she could easily overpower him, yet at the same time, she knew she'd be violating the terms of her assignment if she did. _'It's for the mission. It's for the mission,'_ she repeated in her head like mantra.

* * *

Sasuke was irritated. It wasn't hard to figure out why. His training had been interrupted by that annoying Yamanaka girl, and then came to a complete halt when the dobe suggested ending the session. But that was not the only reason he was irritated; ever since that blonde had babbled, he couldn't stop thinking about Sakura.

'_Hn. So what if some lord is smitten with her? It's not my business.'_

He repeatedly assured himself that Ino's words meant nothing. However, part of him could not deny the possibilities. He knew nothing of Sakura's life outside of Team 7. She worked at the hospital almost nonstop; sometimes the only way to see her was if he and Naruto overexerted themselves during training or a mission. Sasuke was also aware that as the Hokage's apprentice, she would be sent on solo missions to serve as a medic or a representative. It would not be impossible for someone to notice her. How could they not? She had an annoying way of drawing people in with her kind heart and warm smile…!

Sasuke shook his head wildly. These thoughts were ridiculous! She had her life, and he had his. That's all there was to it.

Unintentionally adding more force to his stride, he made his way through the streets. He wasn't quite sure what to do with himself. His training partner had taken off, though perhaps some private training would help clear his head. Yes, that was what he needed.

As he was about to head toward the training grounds once again, he froze when he spotted pink in one of the restaurants. Sakura was there, and she was not alone. Before his logic could stop him, Sasuke's body moved to do some investigating.

Sakura was sitting at a table across from a man Sasuke didn't recognize. Still, he could sense this man seemed like an arrogant bastard. His elbow was perched on the table, and he had his chin resting on his hand as he leaned forward. The man was practically drooling over her! From what Sasuke could tell, the man was doing most of the talking. However, his position did not allow him to see his teammate's face.

"Oh, it feels like ages since we've had some quality time, wouldn't you agree? I really am looking forward to today."

Sasuke suppressed the urge to vomit when the creep grabbed Sakura's hand. Anticipating her usual retaliation, he waited. But it didn't come. She didn't move at all! What the hell was going on?!

A surge of anger and betrayal flared within him as he stormed off. How could she? She, who claimed to love him with all her heart, who would stop at nothing to bring him home, was with another man? His fury continued to burn as he thought of his return to the village. Yes, their relationship had been awkward at first, since she avoided him for so long. But the talk they had deep within the training grounds… Hadn't that _meant_ something? Apparently not. Not to her, anyway.

* * *

Sakura had truly tried to be patient. Still, she could only bear so much. As soon as his hand had reached for hers, it was itching to send him flying with a single blow. She knew she had to show respect, but she was near her breaking point. To think, the mission had barely begun, and she already couldn't stand it!

Roughly, she flicked her hand away from his grasp. "I believe you are forgetting something, young lord. The reason you are here is for business purposes. I would appreciate it if you kept that in mind."

Akiro was shocked at first, not expecting her refusal, but the cold fury in her eyes caused him to shrink back. Realizing his confidence had wavered in front of a woman, he quickly composed himself and looked at her with all seriousness. He coughed, "Very well, then. Let us proceed."

* * *

Ino happily sighed to herself as she arranged the flowers in the shop. She couldn't help but daydream, imagining the joy and love her friends had gained because of her intervention. For sure, the boys must have seen Hinata and Sakura with other men, realized what they've been missing, and got so possessive that they stepped in and took their girls back. Yep. Her plan was perfect, so of course everything must have gone _exactly_ according to plan!

* * *

_**Woo-hoo! FINALLY another chapter! I must say, Ino's really done it this time. What will become of our troubled pairs?**_

_**Review!**_


	5. Backfire

"Here's my report, Lady Tsunade."

Sakura casually dropped the paperwork on her teacher's desk. Knowing how much the Hokage _adored_ paperwork, Sakura had made sure to add a few extra pages. It couldn't be helped! That so-called lord was just so full of himself! When he had finally left the village yesterday, Sakura had felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders! So, naturally, she got a small source of revenge on her teacher for assigning her that mission.

Lady Tsunade groaned at the sight of work on her desk, but she knew she had no choice. "Very well. I trust the client was satisfied?"

Sakura smirked. "Not in all areas, but I met every expectation on the mission."

"Any injuries?" Tsunade eyed her student knowingly.

"None whatsoever." '_Though it took a lot of will power.'_ Sakura mentally added.

"Very good. You are dismissed."

"Um, before that Lady Tsunade… can we avoid assigning me to Lord Akiro in the future?"

Tsunade leaned back in her chair. She wasn't surprised by Sakura's request. Judging by the report from their last encounter, the man was a self-absorbed sleaze ball. But according to the system, there was nothing she could do about it. "I'm sorry, Sakura, but the man personally requested you. If I openly lied about your whereabouts, he'd probably start a ruckus. Then those elders would never get off my back."

"I might just happen to know where the sake got stashed."

"… … I'll see what I can do."

Sakura grinned like a child. "Thanks, Lady Tsunade! Third file drawer down!"

As Sakura was about to shut the door, she caught her teacher making a break for the file cabinets. _Too bad I didn't tell her which cabinet…_ Sakura smirked.

* * *

Sasuke was irritated.

Of course, this wasn't abnormal; everything irritated him. Today the list was just piling up; no one had shown up for training. Kakashi was late as usual; that was normal. Naruto wasn't there yet; that idiot was always later than him, but not this late! Then there was Sakura; most of the time, she arrived around the time he did, though sometimes earlier. Though after what he witnessed yesterday, he'd be surprised if she showed up at all. He realized he was gritting his teeth at the thought. '_Forget it. She's not worth it,' _he kept telling himself. But no matter how many times he thought it, he never bought it. Thoughts about Sakura and her "boyfriend" kept entering his mind without his permission, and it was getting annoying!

"Sorry I'm late."

Of course, the object of his thoughts would approach while he was in this state of mind. Why did the sight of her upset him? What was wrong with him?

"Sasuke? Are you okay?"

_Just ignore her. _It's all he could do. Maybe forgetting would calm his nerves. Sakura had seemed to give up, and they stood in silence for a while. Sasuke's thoughts continued to trouble him, and eventually, Sakura couldn't take the silence.

"I know why Kakashi isn't here, but where is Naruto?"

"… … …"

"Umm… I mean, he's usually here and complaining by now, right?"

"… … …"

Sakura was starting to panic a bit. Sasuke sensed some distress on her end, but he stubbornly continued to ignore her.

"S-Sasuke? Are you mad at me?"

"… … …"

"Come on, please don't be like that. I'm sorry for being late. I had to take care of something first."

Sasuke could only guess what that "something" could be. An image of her and that stuck-up fool appeared in his mind, triggering his anger again.

"Oh, so you can only train when it's convenient, is that it?" he stated with some heavy sarcasm.

Sakura was a bit startled by Sasuke's comment. "What's that supposed to mean? Sasuke, I take my training seriously."

"Then where have you been? You've been skipping out on training a lot lately."

"I have other responsibilities, and you know it!"

Sasuke turned and glared at her. "Responsibilities, huh? Like wasting your time socializing?"

The medic took strong offense to that. She had been working her butt off as the Hokage's apprentice and as a medic. There was no way the Uchiha prodigy could possibly understand all the work that came with her position! How dare he suggest she was blowing them off for pointless matters! But he had never complained before, so why care now?

"Sasuke, what has gotten into you? I'm here, aren't I?"

"Like that has helped before."

Sasuke knew that was a low blow. He was well aware of Sakura's self-confidence issues; she had always been afraid of being useless. But he was angry, and the words had left his mouth before he could stop them.

Deciding he couldn't take anymore, he got up and started to walk away.

"And just where are you going?!" Sakura called after him. But he had already gone back to ignoring her.

* * *

When Kakashi had finally arrived, he found that the males of them team were not present, and the female was like a ticking time-bomb. Because of lack of participation and Kakashi's self-preservation skills, group training was canceled for the day.

Now Sakura walked through the village in a daze. She was angry, of course, but she couldn't stop worrying about her interaction with Sasuke. Just what was that all about? Yes, Sasuke was normally blunt, harsh, and distant, but today he was about ten times more so. Did something happen? Had she done something to upset him? His statements were obviously aimed at her, but could that have been due to the fact that she was the only other person there? She just couldn't wrap her head around it!

"Hey, Forehead!"

A shout from the streets brought her out of her thoughts. Sakura sighed as her bubbly friend ran towards her. "What do you want, Pig?"

"What's with that greeting? Here I thought you'd be happy."

"What about?"

Ino nudged her best friend's arm. "Oh, you don't need to keep secrets from me! I know all about you and your new boyfriend."

Sakura looked absolutely mortified! "Gross! As if I'd ever date that lecherous creep!"

Now Ino was confused. "Lecherous? Didn't think Sasuke had it in him."

"What does Sasuke have to do with anything?"

That made Ino blink. Weren't they talking about the same person? Apparently not. "You mean, you didn't see him yesterday?"

"Yesterday? Pig, I was on a mission all day! I told you about that!"

Ino was a bit surprised. She never expected that the Uchiha would bail! "That Uchiha coward." She muttered.

Sakura caught her words. "Yamanka Ino, what have you been plotting? What did you do to Sasuke?"

The girl glared. "Shut up! You make it sound like I was planning the downfall of the village! You should at least be grateful for what I did!"

'_Grateful? For wha-'_ Sakura suddenly remembered Ino's latest personal mission. She stared at her so-called friend in disbelief. "Pig… You didn't…"

"Yes I did," Ino huffed. "You obviously weren't going to make the moves on him, so I mentioned you hanging out with Lord Akiro."

"And did you tell him it was for a mission?"

"Of course not! Then he wouldn't care! The only reason I said he was your boyfriend was to get Sasuke to—"

Sakura covered Ino's mouth with her hand; she looked her dead in the eye. "Say that again. What. Did. You. Tell. Sasuke?"

The blonde finally realized her mistake; in her anger toward the Uchiha, she stupidly told Sakura everything! '_Dead woman walking…'_

After a quick gulp, she pointed at Sakura's hand, signaling her to remove it. Now the pinkette had her hands on her hips and was tapping her foot, waiting to hear Ino's explanation. "I… I told Sasuke…"

"I heard you say you told him I had a boyfriend! Now I want to know why!"

"… To make him jealous, okay?!"

Sakura scoffed. "Congratulations, then. If he is jealous, he's currently taking it out on me! If he isn't insulting me, he's blatantly ignoring me! You won't believe the kind of trouble that causes during training!"

There was no way Sakura could deny the frustration she was feeling or the impact Sasuke's words had on her. Ino had seriously crossed the line, and now he was angry at her for something she never did! What was she supposed to do now? There was no way he was going to listen to anything she had to say! Her body trembled as she continued her rant.

"I already told you I was satisfied with the way things were. Sasuke and I were finally almost friends, and that's the most he can mentally handle right now. I wasn't going to push him into something he's not ready for! Now he probably thinks I betrayed him, and we all know how well he copes with that, don't we?!"

There was nothing said; what could Ino say? She hadn't meant for this to happen. Everything was going according to plan! What went wrong? Why hadn't anyone tried to stop her?!

"…Forehead, I…"

"SAKURAAAA!"

Both girls turned to see Hinata running at them in a panic. As soon as she arrived, she grabbed onto Sakura's arm.

"You have to come quick!"

Before Ino knew it, Hinata was pulling Sakura away, leaving her alone. _Déjà vu_.

* * *

"Hinata? What's going on? Is there an emergency?"

"In a way, yes! I'm sorry, but I didn't know who else to turn to!"

The heiress led the medic through the village. They were about to turn the corner, when Hinata stopped and let go of Sakura's arm. "You go."

A bit confused by her sudden shyness, Sakura peeked around the corner. Low and behold, they were not too far from Ichiraku. As usual, there sat her knucklehead teammate. Yet something seemed… off. He looked depressed.

"He's been like that for a while," Hinata whispered. Sakura returned to their corner to listen to the rest of Hinata's story. The more information she retained, the more accurate her diagnosis could be.

"I was coming back from training with Kiba and Shino. We were just talking like usual. Then we bumped into Naruto. He was unusually quiet, but he kept looking between Kiba and me. I was worried, so I followed him here. He hasn't left that spot. I wanted to talk to him, but I backed out. I was hoping you could talk to him and find out what's wrong. Please, Sakura?"

The medic's mind was busy working her magic. It didn't take a genius to diagnose this case. "You say he was looking at you and Kiba?"

Hinata nodded, and Sakura groaned. "Looks like that pig got you, too."

"Eh? What do you mean?"

With one last peek at Naruto, Sakura placed a hand on Hinata's shoulder. "Let's go talk in private. We'll come back and check on him later."

* * *

Sakura and Hinata found a park bench to sit and talk. There, Sakura explained what Ino had done.

"… So Sasuke hates me at the moment because Ino set him up. He saw me on a mission and got the wrong idea. No doubt, Ino tried the same trick on Naruto. Judging by his behavior, she must have set it up to make Kiba your 'boyfriend.'" Sakura used her fingers to imitate quotation marks.

Hinata gasped, "That's true! Kiba was sent by Ino to deliver flowers to me!"

"Sounds like her. My guess: Naruto saw everything and got the wrong idea."

"I don't like this, Sakura. It's deceitful." Hinata said as she tightly folded her hands in her lap. "Wh-what if Naruto hates me, too?"

Sakura bit her lip. Ino had seriously made a mess of things. Just how were they going to clean this up? With Naruto depressed and Sasuke more bitter than usual, Team 7 was heading for some major issues.

"Let's take this one step at a time. Since we have a good idea what's bothering them, we can make a plan to fix this. We'll talk to Naruto first, all right? Then once that knucklehead's back to his old self, maybe he can help me smooth things over with Sasuke. We can do it! Come on!"

"W-wait! If you and Naruto are doing the talking, it's not necessary to bring me along. I won't be any help…"

Sakura's eyes softened; she knew what the girl was thinking. Helplessness is never something pleasant. The medic sighed. "Hinata… Actually, I was thinking it would be best if he heard the truth from you."

The girl blanched and was seriously about to faint, but Sakura held her shoulders in support. "I'm sorry about this. I know you're afraid to approach Naruto, but right now, he needs us. He needs you, Hyuga Hinata."

With that, Sakura got up and led a bright red, stuttering Hinata back to Ichiraku.


End file.
